The Land of Fire and Ice - Iceland

Hallo (Hello) from the land of fire and ice! 

 

Iceland is truly an amazing place (but with terrible weather). Why didn't anyone warn me about the weather? As an outdoor enthusiast who lives in Duluth, MN, a place many like to call, "The Bold North," I consider myself somewhat of an expert on the topic of "bad weather." I like to say, "There's no such thing as bad weather but inappropriate clothing." We live by a giant lake, Lake Superior, which acts like a giant outdoor air conditioner in the summer as it slowly warms up. Temps remain a cozy 60 or 70 degrees and finally warm up just in time for the kids to go back-to-school in early September. 

Iceland, on the other hand, has an immense Atlantic Ocean and given that it's at 66 degree north latitude, also has the Arctic Ocean to keep it cool. Therefore, it turns out, Iceland has arguably the worst summer weather on the planet! Wet, cold (40-50 degrees F), windy, foggy, and cloudy with temps barely climbing about 60 in August. No thank you! I promise to never complain about Duluth weather again.  

Viking settlers from Norway discovered Iceland uninhabited around 850AD.  It is a volcanic island that spans 2 tectonic plates - the Eurasian and North American - and you can literally stand between them as they slowly move apart. Earthquakes are fairly common here - some due to volcanic activity and the movement of magma and others due to the release of tension and movement of the tectonic plates. 

At the time it was estimated that up to 40% of the island was forested. Today, less than 0.5% of Iceland has trees. Due to the very short growing season (winter only has a few hours of daylight every day), the trees take decades to grow. Wet, cold and hungry Vikings and subsequent pirates and other settlers, chopped down this precious resource to build houses and keep warm until there were no more. Despite what it looks like in northern Minnesota, timber, it turns out, is not an infinite resource. Seeing this barren, lava filled landscape reminded me of photos of Duluth from the early 1900s during the lumberjack era. Thankfully, we had leaders that worked to protect out natural resources and had a vision to establish parks so that we can enjoy these places for many generations to come. Traveling to Iceland I had planned to see friends and the natural beauty. What I was most struck by was their sustainability ethic. 

Renewable energy was mainstream - geothermal energy plants and other renewable sources supply 85% of the electricity. Rental cars were mostly electric. Cafes used paper straws and biodegradable lids and wooden spoons. Plastic bags were banned and everyone carried reusable bags. 

Iceland is making progress toward reducing carbon emissions unlike the U.S. The U.S. currently has only 7 states with geothermal energy and renewable energy is only 16% of our total energy, by contrast. It reminded me that we need to choose to live in more sustainable ways and we can't take any of our natural resources for granted. We can elect leaders who are champions of environmental policy and advocate our local governments to increase renewable energy. Reduce our personal dependence on single-use disposable items. Increasing climate education in schools and empower a new generation of Greta Thunberg's. We can actually responding to climate challenges with real public policy plans. Recycling and reusing are essential on a small island where goods must be imported but they should be essential for us, too. 

Takk (thank you) and bless (goodbye)!

Our trip from A to Z, by Theo and Marit:

A is for Amazing views and Annie Borton and Robin - friends we met on the trip
B is for bathing in the Blue Lagoon, birdwatching at low tide, Borgarnes settlement centre restaurant in the cliff, the bridge between continents, lots of fishing boats
C is for the big Church Hallgrimskirja in Reykiavik and piles of cairns, or rock towers, marking trails
D is for Djupalonssandur (black pebble beach) and dead birds
E is for Eldfell (volcano) and extremely tall radio towers, new earrings, electric vehicles
F is for the ferry to Westman island and city of Heimey, delicious fish and chips in Stykkisholmur harbor and traditional fish soup
G is for Glaciers, Geothermal energy, Grindavik and Grindafjour parks
H is for Hungry children and Hellnar hike along the black cliffs
I is for Icelandic horses and Iceland souvenirs and infinite Igneous rocks

J is for Jumping pillow in all the parks and yummy Jam
K is for Kirkjufell and Kirkjufellfoss and very Kind people

L is for fresh Lava flowing from Fagradalsfjall and night hike, lots of Lighthouses, Lamb soup and many Languages spoken

M is for Macalester alumni and me, Marit

N is for Not very dark and Nice restaurants
O is for Olof hosting us by the Ocean
P is for Puffins or lundi and Pizza
Q is for Quiet baby horses and a Quite entertaining place
R is for the Radhusio 3D scale model map of Iceland, the Rescue squad at the volcano making trails and Mommy Running
S is for Seljandsfoss, Shipwrecks, Skogafoss, Snaefellsjokull, Snaefellsnes national park, lots of Soccer/futbol fields, a Seal, dozens of Sheep and Seagulls, Swimming in geothermal pools, Sculptures and Super fun family vacation
T is for Tjornin lake and swans and stories of Trolls
U is for Unbelievable waterfalls
V is for erupting Volcano and Viking settlers
W is for Water slides, bad Weather, Westman island and infinite Waterfalls
X is for Xtreme hot water
Y
Zipping around